Health Systems Global Media Fellowship

Health Systems Global Media Fellowship

The first Health Systems Global (HSG) Media Fellowships Programme is offering six (6) fellowships to journalists undertaking cutting edge news and reporting on health systems and health policy topics across the world. This is an opportunity for journalists to engage and build relationships within the community and report on some of the biggest issues and challenges facing the global community in a rapidly changing world. The deadline for applications is 30 September 2017.

The fellowships will include funded attendance and participation in the Fifth Global Symposium on Health Systems Research in October 2018 and close collaboration and support from health systems research and policy experts. The journalists will be working closely with leading thinkers and practitioners to promote the agenda of Health Systems Strengthening (HSS) and address critical health systems and health policy related topics in their country and region.

The Media Fellowship will begin in January 2018, with fellows beginning research or investigation for a feature piece to be published in a major outlet before September 2018. This published piece will be considered for the inaugural Health Systems Global Media Prize.

The Fellowship will include:

• Certificate and citation from Health Systems Global 
•  Profiling on Health Systems Global website and social media
•  Full access and support to participate in the Global Symposium in Liverpool in September 2018, including satellite and skills sessions (flights, accommodation and subsistence for five days)
• Opportunity to interview leading thinkers/actors within health systems
• Full membership of Health Systems Global for 1 year
• Chance to win the inaugural Health Systems Global Media Prize for their feature piece.

Applications are being accepted from Print journalists – Newspaper/Magazine, Broadcast Journalists and film makers, Freelance journalists and eNews journalists (official news websites).

Professional journalists working for outlets based in different countries, in each of the six World Health Organization regions (one from each region) will be selected:

• Africa
• The Americas
• South-East Asia
• Europe
• Eastern Mediterranean
• Western Pacific.

How to apply

If you wish to apply for the HSG Media Fellowship, please visit https://buff.ly/2uw8vqQ for more information and to submit application.

Social Intervention Programs Need Clearer Indicators

Social Intervention Programs Need Clearer Indicators

The programmes director of Penplusbytes, Jerry Sam has indicated that for the various social intervention programs such as the LEAP Programme and the Ghana School Feeding Programme to have the needed impact, there is the need for a paradigm shift.

He explains that once the focus of a social policy is on increase in enrollment numbers for instance, rather than the quality of services being provided, standards will be compromised. After a year of implementing Penplusbytes’ “Tech Driven Social Accountability for Results” project, citizens’ reports from the two beneficiary districts show that the implementation of the policies is flawed. For example, hot meals are not being served in some schools and LEAP benefits are insufficient for beneficiaries.

Penplusbytes in collaboration with CDD Ghana and SEND Ghana organized a one-day Social Accountability Clearing Platform Forum on August 11 to validate reports from citizens in the two project districts (Ellembelle in the Western Region and Ashaiman in the Greater Accra Region).

Outlining recommendations from the reports, Jerry Sam underscored the need for the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection to strengthen collaboration among various stakeholders as well as ensure clear and measurable indicators for social policies. He further advised the Ministry to facilitate the coordination and networking of civil society groups working the area of social accountability.

Penplusbytes with funding support from OSIWA is implementing the 2-year “Tech Driven Social Accountability for Results” project, which seeks to equip ordinary citizens with usable information via online platforms mashed-up with social media and mobile based platforms (www.platformafrica.net ) to promote purposeful participation in demanding accountability and responsiveness from duty bearers for effective public service delivery.

Mr. Sam is of the view that government should facilitate the creation of such platforms for social intervention policies which would enable citizens to monitor and report on their implementation and thereby foster accountability and transparency.

He said social accountability projects were most effective when citizens were supported to understand what services they were entitled to through awareness creation.

The Forum was attended by heads of civil society organisations, state actors and donor organisations.

Credit: GOLDSTREET BUSINESS

Featured Member for the Month of August: Narkwor Kwabla

On air, she uses the name Narkwor Kwabla but her full name is Veronica Narkwor Kwabla, an award winning journalist currently with AfricaNews, the 24-hour African news channel of EuroNews Group broadcasting in English and French. She is a Sub Editor of the English team comprising anchors, broadcast journalists and online journalists.

Narkwor won the Health And Medical category of the CNN African journalist of the Year 2016 for coverage of stories on Ebola in Sierra Leone and Liberia.

She was a finalist in the 2015 Mohammed Amin Africa Media Awards, Best TV News Category for her story titled 'BUSH ALLOWANCE' and a recipient of the 2014 Best TV feature story award at the Ghana Journalist Awards ceremony my documentary titled: ‘BORN DIFFERENT’.

In 2013, Narkwor won the World Press Institute Fellowship to the United States. Whilst in the US she presented a paper on: Journalism in Ghana, Democracy and GMO introduction in Ghana at the Communications Department at Carroll College in Helena, Montana.

She had earlier worked with TV3 in Ghana, as a News Anchor and Reporter and Producer.  Prior to that, Narkwor was a Senior Reporter with TV Africa also in Accra and reported from the Presidency from July 2009 to July 2010.

She has covered news stories and events of national and international interest including the outbreak of Ebola in Sierra Leone and Liberia, the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government summit on Ebola, held in Accra on November 6, 2014, the presidential reception for US President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama’s visit to Ghana in 2009, the 12^th United Nations Conference on Trade and Development(UNCTAD XII) in Accra, Ghana in 2008 and the Grand debate on 'Union Government Summit' of the African Union in Accra, Ghana in July, 2017 among others.

Narkwor is an alumnus of the Reuters Foundation and a fellow of Radio Netherlands Training Centre, RNTC, in the Netherlands. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Linguistics and Psychology from the University of Ghana.